Medical conditions of urinary incontinence and pelvic prolapse are conditions of great importance. An aging population can be prone to such conditions.
Urinary incontinence and pelvic prolapse are related to tissues of the pelvic region such as the bladder, urethra, and the vaginal vault. Pelvic prolapse develops when intra-abdominal pressure, muscle failure, a surgical procedure such as a hysterectomy, or other factors, allow or cause a pelvic organ such as the vagina to become displaced. Within the general category of pelvic organ prolapse, specific types include vault prolapse (apical) such as enterocele; cystocele (anterior); rectocele (posterior); and combinations of these.
Various techniques have been designed to correct or ameliorate vaginal vault prolapse and its symptoms, with varying degrees of success. Nonsurgical treatments involve measures to improve the factors associated with prolapse, including treating chronic cough, obesity, and constipation. Other nonsurgical treatments may include pelvic muscle exercises or supplementation with estrogen.
A variety of surgical procedures have also been attempted for the treatment of pelvic conditions such as vaginal vault prolapse and urinary incontinence. See for example U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/834,943, entitled “Method and Apparatus for Treating Pelvic Organ Prolapse,” filed Apr. 30, 2004, and Ser. No. 10/306,179, entitled “Transobturator Surgical Articles and Methods,” filed Nov. 27, 2002, the entireties of each of these two patent applications being incorporated herein by reference. Such patent applications describe articles and methods for treating incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse by use of a support member for supporting specific tissue. U.S. application Ser. No. 10/834,943, for example, discusses a support member that includes a central tissue support portion and two end portions, and related methods for implantation. The central tissue support portion can be attached at tissue of a prolapsed organ, e.g., at the posterior of the vaginal vault. The end portions of the support member are then positioned through respective tissue pathways to place the support member in a therapeutic position for treatment of the prolapsed organ.